Leo De Watts

Acquisition entrepreneur & founder @ HM‑D Capital.
Helping owners & investors buy, sell & improve cash‑flowing assets.
Previously flew Boeing 777s out of HK.

[Leo De Watts @LeoDeWatts]

House: asset or liability?
Car: asset or liability?

Easy way to think about it: if it’s putting money in your pocket each month, call it an asset. If it’s only taking money out, it’s a liability with good PR.

#assets #liabilities #ukinvestor

[Leo De Watts @LeoDeWatts]

The full phrase isn’t just “rags to riches”.

It’s “rags to riches and back again in three generations”.

Gen 1 builds it.
Gen 2 spends it.
Gen 3 wonders where it went?

#FinancialEducation #Invest #RagsToRiches

[Leo De Watts @LeoDeWatts]

Two people are having an argument.

Seller: “Pay me for the future.”
Buyer: “I’ll pay you for the past.”

The trick is a structure that pays for history on day one and gives the seller a real second bite if the future shows up.

#sellmybusiness #businesssale #dealstructure

[Leo De Watts @LeoDeWatts]

Dyslexia is a super-power in business.

If you can’t stop asking “why”, and are constantly inventing little strategies to survive, then that is exactly what you need to build businesses and solve money problems.

#dyslexia #entrepreneur #ukbusiness

[Leo De Watts @LeoDeWatts]

Thinking about buying a business?

But what would you actually buy?
- Something to plug into what you already run?
- Or something bigger you’d plug into?

If you’ve got a business now, what other business would you love to acquire?

#buyingabusiness #ukbusiness #M&A

[Leo De Watts @LeoDeWatts]

There’s a cheat way to scale your business.

Why is your company worth X on its own, but suddenly worth much more when it’s part of a well run group of similar firms?

And could you be the one building that group instead of waiting to be bought?

#businessgrowth #M&A #ukbusiness

[Leo De Watts @LeoDeWatts]

Why do founders so often get fired after taking investment?

Did you sell control to people who were always going to replace you as CEO?

And if you love building, why just wait to be acquired instead of becoming the one buying others?

#founder #investment #M&A #ukbusiness

[Leo De Watts @LeoDeWatts]

When you sell your company, are you the bolt-on or the platform?

Some buyers just want your piece to plug into their machine. Others want your business to be the core they bolt other firms onto.

Which are you building?

#sellmybusiness #M&A #ukbusiness

[Leo De Watts @LeoDeWatts]

If you went on holiday for 2 weeks with no phone, would your business still run?

If not, you are the key person.

Getting yourself out of being the key person is what makes a business actually sellable.

#sellmybusiness #keypersonrisk #ukbusiness

[Leo De Watts @LeoDeWatts]

Want to pay less tax on buying & selling property?
There's a way to do it, and everyone wins!
Want the breakdown of one layered structure that does this? Comment under the video.
#ukproperty #dealstructure #spv

[Leo De Watts @LeoDeWatts]

Why do founders so often get replaced as CEO after an acquisition

- Is it politics?
- Or is the “start from zero” skillset just very different from the “run at scale” skillset?

And if you’re a founder, what would you change to survive that jump?

#founder #M&A #ukbusiness

[Leo De Watts @LeoDeWatts]

When your company gets bought, buyers are not just looking at spreadsheets.

They are asking: do we parachute in a CEO or is there someone already here who can run this

If you know the place inside out, that sale might be your promotion moment.

#businessacquisition #ukbusiness

[Leo De Watts @LeoDeWatts]

Buy a business without proper due diligence, and you risk killing it yourself.

If it doesn't do what it said on the tin, cash gets tight, doors close, staff go, legacy gone.

Who is actually checking it for you before you sign?

#duediligence #buyingabusiness #ukbusiness

[Leo De Watts @LeoDeWatts]

Selling your business?

Before you name a price, ask: if a buyer borrowed the full amount and had 5 years to clear capital + interest, with a couple of bad years, would it work for them at all?

If not, what are you actually selling?

#sellmybusiness #businesssale #ukbusiness

[Leo De Watts @LeoDeWatts]

I did not lose money picking the “wrong” property.
I lost money because I bought the right thing but in the wrong structure.
If you invest before you understand the structure, you might make the same mistakes I did!

#investingmistakes #ukproperty #financialeducation

[Leo De Watts @LeoDeWatts]

You have a secret inheritance.
You've inherited many things, including a world miles ahead of where any past generation started.
Wealth gets interesting when you stop asking "how much for me?" and start asking "what am I leaving after me?"

#wealthbuilding #generationalwealth

[Leo De Watts @LeoDeWatts]

Overseas investors: "UK looks solid, how do I buy in?"
Brits: "UK is broken, why bother?"
The UK has high standards, real bricks and mortar, and a rulebook people trust - that is what the UK means to overseas investors.

#investinuk #ukproperty #ukbusiness #foreigninvestment

[Leo De Watts @LeoDeWatts]

Buying a business is not just “X times profit”.
1st: does it fit the buy box?
2nd: what does the seller actually need out of this?
3rd: price and structure, including tax.
Get the outcomes aligned or the deal never really works.
#buyingabusiness #dealstructure #ukbusiness

[Leo De Watts @LeoDeWatts]

Sold a multi million pound business. How much hits your own account on day one, and how much got taxed?

If you are anywhere near a sale, the structure matters as much as the price.

#sellmybusiness #sellshares #ukbusiness #M&A #tax

[Leo De Watts @LeoDeWatts]

Every time you sort your finances, a new tax rule nukes the plan.
Blame the monopoly board game that taught you the rules never change. In real life, they do.

Learn to plan for rule changes or keep being surprised.

#taxreform #taxchanges #financialeducation